Tampa Bay Buccaneers Will Regret Releasing Josh Freeman

By Tyler

Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports

Ever since the Josh Freeman saga began for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers,it has been clear that head coach Greg Schiano did not have his quarterback’s back.

In fact, it appeared as if Schiano wanted his quarterback ousted so badly that he led the smear campaign against Freeman that included leaking his confidential entrance into the NFL‘s substance abuse program. After watching Schiano show absolutely no public support for Freeman, it was only a matter of time until the quarterback was released, and this time came on Thursday afternoon.

When looking at the move, it is seems that this will ultimately leave the Buccaneers wondering what could have been with Freeman and sending Schiano out the door rather quickly.

Throughout his career, Freeman has by no means been an impeccable quarterback, but it is impossible to doubt that he has been at least average and has shown the potential to develop into a superstar. During 80 career games, he has thrown for 13,534 yards, a 58.2 percent completion percentage, 80 touchdowns and 66 interceptions.

These statistics identify the fact that Freeman has been extremely average as a starter in the NFL, but do not identify that he is done improving at 25. He stands a massive 6-foot-6 and 240 pounds. and when things have been going well, it appears as if his accuracy issues seem to go away.

While he must learn to keep things steady when they go wrong, there is no denying that no one else in the Buccaneers organization can even boast about having the same potential to be a top-notch quarterback.

What makes the move even more head-scratching is that instead of keeping an immensely talented quarterback, the Buccaneers organization kept Schiano, who has shown absolutely no indication of being a top-level head coach in the NFL. Since becoming the team’s head coach prior to the 2012 season, he has posted a 7-13 record, and has created a locker room filled with angst and distrust according to reports.

This is simply unacceptable for any head coach, but especially for one that came to the NFL as a controversial hire after never having previously been a head coach in the league.

In the end, the Buccaneers had to make a decision between retaining Schiano and Freeman, and decided that they wanted Schiano. From the outside looking in at the organization, this appears to be a move that shows no indication of making the team’s roster better either in the short or long term.

Tyler Leli is a Washington Capitals writer for Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter, “Like” him on Facebook or join his network on Google.